My Thoughts On People Who “Don’t Read”

Let me premise my argument with the fact that I was once a person who didn’t read for fun. The only reading I claimed to do was reading that I was required to do for my classes. In hindsight, that wasn’t true, as I’m sure it isn’t true for most others.

Unless you are illiterate, in which case you wouldn’t be reading this blog, you’re a reader. Think about it for a second. News articles, magazines, billboards…. each requires you to read. A self-proclaimed nonreader might exclaim, “But that doesn’t count!” Why shouldn’t it count? The fact of the matter is that everyone reads, but they only read material they’re interested in. Sports fanatics read news articles, parents reading parenting magazines, scientists read science journals, and so on and so on. What many people fail to realize is that the short articles they find so interesting are in fact just smaller version of numerous books. It seems like most people hear the word “book” and immediately think of nonfiction stories or educational textbooks. The fact of the matter is that there are books dedicated to every subject matter you could imagine! 

My point is simply this: everyone reads, even self-proclaimed “nonreaders”. More often than not, they just haven’t found the right book!

I’m a perfect example of someone who was essentially force fed various books throughout my education that led to my thinking I just didn’t like reading. The reality was that I just didn’t like reading the books I was being given. Once I discovered there were books I actually enjoyed reading, the damage had been done. I’d become a reader. 

I don’t mean to say that everyone will have an insatiable desire to read once they find a subject matter they enjoy. Some people enjoy reading more than others to be sure. However, I do think that everyone enjoys books if they can simply find the right books.